Thursday, February 23, 2012

Persons of Interest: Lana (formerly Larry) Wachowski

You can argue that a celebrity who ruins his marriage by delving into L.A.'s BDSM scene and then starts identifying as female isn't appropriate for Unknown Armies, but you'd probably be wrong.

That level of symbolic tension is perfect for an avatar of the Mystic Hermaphrodite.

This basically goes in the same format as Nadya Suleman: you can check out Lana Wachowski by looking at Wikipedia or IMDB without my help.

I will, however, specifically direct you to this thread on The Straight Dope. It talks about Larry's 2001 affair with Los Angeles dominatrix Ilsa Strix (leading to his 2002 divorce from then-wife Thea Bloom), as well as his transformation into Lana Wachowski.

Dukes put the smart money on Laurence encountering the occult underground during his time in L.A.'s BDSM scene, although a few tell a convoluted tale of a young Larry meeting the Freak back in Chicago. From there, he made the conscious decision to channel the Mystic Hermaphrodite (by symbolically wrecking his marriage, changing his gender, and keeping this all very personal and quiet).

Some dukes also claim the Wachowskis are deliberately inserting mystic themes into their movies (some dukes claim the "desert of the real" is symbolic of the Statosphere and The Matrix is all about the Clergy's cycle) in an attempt to bring magick to the masses. (Some even blather that The Matrix sequels sucked because the first one was just Hinduism in a science-fiction/action film while the other two were an attempt to reconcile human understanding with the incomprehensible symbolism of the Invisible Clergy.)

Smart dukes want to stay the hell away from that. Between the Sleepers and the Sleeping Tiger, I'll take neither, thank you.

Personality: The Comic Book Nerd. Friendly and outgoing on subjects that capture her attention, otherwise somewhat awkward and standoffish.Obsession: Identity. What makes people determine whom they are?Wound Points: 45